


hold me tight or don't

by SyverneSien



Series: The Sun Rises Over Reideroth [2]
Category: Original Work, The Sun Rises Over Reideroth
Genre: Awkward Flirting, Domestic Fluff, M/M, Not Canon Compliant, One Shot, Original Character(s), Original Universe, Sharing a Bed, welcome to tsror here is a non canon one shot about 2 of my favourite boys
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-28
Updated: 2021-01-28
Packaged: 2021-03-14 10:40:23
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,475
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29044746
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SyverneSien/pseuds/SyverneSien
Summary: When he walked into the room, Nedd groaned and said, “You’ve got to be kidding me.”Pendrick was lying sprawled across the bed and reading a book--the bed. There was only one. And Pendrick looked as if he’d known it the whole time, that cheeky, annoying twat with his stupid smug grin…“I’m sleeping on the floor,” Nedd declared. He’d have to find some extra blankets and pillows from somewhere, or maybe he could steal some off of the bed--if Pendrick hadn’t gotten his germs all over them already.Pendrick sat up and jumped from the bed, reaching out to grab Nedd by the arm. “Oh, no you’re not!” he exclaimed, and this time when Nedd tried to wrench his arm out of Pendrick’s grip, he held fast. “There’s a perfectly good bed here and it’s big enough for two.”“You’re insane if you think I’ll sleep next to you in a bed, Stafford,” Nedd replied. “Let go of my arm, you bastard.”Nedd hates Pendrick. And then they're forced to share a bed.
Relationships: Neddison Greypoint/Pendrick Stafford, Original Male Character/Original Male Character
Series: The Sun Rises Over Reideroth [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2130834
Comments: 6
Kudos: 5





	hold me tight or don't

Nedd drummed his fingers on the front desk of the inn. It was late and he was exhausted, wishing the rest of their entourage could hurry up and bring their stuff inside. He sighed, looking around at the group--Cyrus and Harper, two of the Merchants, were with him but standing a few strides away, whilst the other three were outside with Colton and…

“Neddison!” cooed a voice, and an arm was slung around Nedd’s shoulders, sending a jolt of surprise down his spine.  _ Pendrick, _ Nedd thought sourly, glancing at the taller man. He had a strong, muscular build and blond hair that was shaved on the sides but long enough at the back to be braided, which it was currently. His eyes were covered by a small mask that resembled a bird. Pendrick beamed at him, and Nedd viciously shoved his arm away.

“Don’t touch me,  _ Pendick _ ,” Nedd snarled, taking a step away from Pendrick. “I don’t trust you anywhere near me.” He paused, brushing his ginger hair out of his face. “You might have everybody else fooled with your hero act, but I don’t think anybody can change that fast. I have my eye on you.” Pendrick had tried to  _ kill _ them, by the gods! And now he was acting as if he was their best friend, and everybody was  _ accepting _ it.

“I know you do,” replied Pendrick condescendingly. “You’re doing a great job protecting everybody from my inherent evilness. When you finally expose me for my trickery, they’ll all praise your name and kiss the ground you walk on.” He rolled his eyes. “Anyway, have you got our rooms sorted yet?”

They both looked to the woman at the desk, who had been standing there awkwardly the entire time. “We’re a bit short,” she said quickly, fumbling for some papers. “We have four rooms left, and there are eight of you, so you’ll have to share.”

“Well, Cyrus and Harper will share,” Nedd said. Those two were practically family. “And the two girls, then Mat can share with Colt since they’re about the same age, which leaves me with…” he let out a long, tired sigh, “...Pendrick.”

The woman looked between them. “Are you sure-” she started, before Nedd cut her off.

“It’ll be fine. I can deal with Pendrick for one night.” Nedd waved his hand dismissively. “At least if he kills me in my sleep, everybody will know who it was.”

Pendrick shifted closer to Nedd, placing his hand on Nedd’s shoulder, and Nedd felt his face heat up--he was definitely embarrassed at having to share a room with a man he hated. “We’re going to be roommates, Neddy-boy!” Pendrick purred.

“Great,” Nedd grumbled. “Just great.” He was beginning to regret not putting up more of a fight. “Let’s get this over with.”

* * *

When he walked into the room, Nedd groaned and said, “You’ve got to be kidding me.”

Pendrick was lying sprawled across the bed and reading a book-- _ the _ bed. There was only one. And Pendrick looked as if he’d known it the whole time, that cheeky, annoying twat with his stupid smug grin…

“I’m sleeping on the floor,” Nedd declared. He’d have to find some extra blankets and pillows from somewhere, or maybe he could steal some off of the bed--if Pendrick hadn’t gotten his germs all over them already.

Pendrick sat up and jumped from the bed, reaching out to grab Nedd by the arm. “Oh, no you’re not!” he exclaimed, and this time when Nedd tried to wrench his arm out of Pendrick’s grip, he held fast. “There’s a perfectly good bed here and it’s big enough for two.”

“You’re insane if you think I’ll sleep next to you in a bed, Stafford,” Nedd replied. “Let go of my arm, you bastard.” This was getting far too intimate for his liking, especially considering he still hated Pendrick’s guts.

Pendrick shrugged and did as he was asked, and Nedd staggered back a bit. “It’s one night, Nedd. The rooms are all full. If you want to break your back by trying to sleep on the hardwood floor, be my guest--but even my enemies deserve a bit of hospitality, don’t you think?” Pendrick leaned forward to loom over Nedd, who was slowly realizing his predicament.

“Fine,” Nedd decided quickly. “Fine, I’ll sleep in the gods-damned bed. But if you tell a single soul about this, I will  _ kill _ you.”

“I swear it on my life,” Pendrick promised, putting his hand over his heart. Then he removed the mask from his face and placed it on a side table. “In return, don’t steal this while I’m sleeping, okay?”

Nedd eyed the mask. It amplified Pendrick’s magic tenfold, turning him into the dangerous illusionist that had nearly killed him once. It would be much better if it was in Nedd’s hands, but… Pendrick was supposed to be on their side now. It would do no good to take it. “Okay,” he agreed. “You take the left side of the bed, I’ll take the right?”

Pendrick nodded, and as they moved it sort of hit Nedd. This was Pendrick, a man he despised with his entire heart, and they were about to spend the whole night sleeping in the same bed. Nedd felt… nervous, actually, though he assumed it was because Pendrick could easily kill him.

Nedd pulled back the covers on his side and eyed Pendrick warily as the other man climbed into the bed without hesitation. It was only one night, and they were heading off early in the morning, so there was no time to waste hanging around or changing out of travelling clothes.  _ Good, _ Nedd thought. It just made this whole ordeal a bit less awkward and hopefully would make it a bit easier to move on from the next day.

“I don’t bite,” Pendrick teased as Nedd slowly joined him. “Hey, if it makes it any better, I could buy you a drink tomorrow.” He cracked a small smile.

Nedd’s heart skipped a beat and he didn’t reply for a moment, too busy extinguishing the candle in the lantern on his side of the bed. “No thanks,” he huffed, laying down and turning away from Pendrick so that they weren’t facing each other anymore. “I’m not interested.” Then he tried to figure out why the words tasted sour on his lips.

“Your loss,” Pendrick murmured. “In case you hadn’t noticed, Neddy-boy, I’m a very handsome man.” Then the bed creaked and the lantern next to Pendrick went out, leaving them both laying there, silent, in the darkness.

Nedd  _ had _ noticed, actually. And if Pendrick hadn’t been a murderous wizard hellbent on vengeance when Nedd had met him, he would’ve probably been Nedd’s type. It made no difference that he’d mellowed out now--Nedd still didn’t trust him, and he was so much of a thorn in Nedd’s side that Nedd didn’t think he’d ever even consider Pendrick a  _ friend. _ At least, that was what he told himself.

In a short while, Nedd heard when Pendrick’s breathing slowed to indicate that he had drifted off. It was after that that Nedd finally fell asleep, putting his anxieties to rest and hoping that this didn’t come back to kick him in the butt somehow.

* * *

When he dreamt, Nedd found himself back home, as he often did. They were usually nightmares about his brother leaving him to become a knight (which he’d done, and Nedd was still angry about all these years later), but this time it was a bit different.

_ “Tam?” Nedd called, pushing open the door of the bedroom and stepping into the hall. His brother had to be here somewhere. This was their house, where they’d grown up--it didn’t make sense that he would be gone. “Hello?” _

_ The smell of someone cooking drew him to the kitchen, where someone was standing with his back to the door. It wasn’t Tam, that was for sure, and Nedd squinted at him, trying to figure out who he was and why he was in his house. _

_ Then the man turned around, put down the pan he was holding, and grinned, and Nedd realized that Pendrick was standing in his kitchen, making him… breakfast. _

_ “What are you doing in my house?” Nedd demanded, taking a step forward. _

_ “Our house,” Pendrick corrected quickly, not seeming bothered by Nedd’s aggressiveness. “It’s our house, darling.” _

_ “I… what?” Nedd paused, his brow furrowing. The only way he could describe how he was feeling was ‘confused’, though ‘baffled’ and ‘stunned’ were also up there. _

_ Then, furthering Nedd’s confusion, Pendrick grabbed him by the front of his shirt and kissed him. _

_ For some reason, Nedd didn’t feel angry or disgusted, and he didn’t push Pendrick away. In fact, he reached up to cup the back of Pendrick’s head in his hand and put his other hand on Pendrick’s hip. Pendrick’s lips were softer than he’d imagined, not that he’d ever imagined them, and when Pendrick pulled away, Nedd’s head was spinning and his heart was pounding in his chest. _

_ “You remember who I am now, right?” Pendrick prompted, and when he took Nedd’s hand, Nedd realized that Pendrick was wearing a ring on his hand, and his sleep-addled brain finally caught up. _

_ In response, Nedd leaned forward to kiss Pendrick’s cheek. “Yeah,” he replied. “My husband.” _

* * *

When Nedd woke up, he remembered every moment of his dream, and it shocked him into complete stillness. Then it started to slip away, and after a few minutes he could only remember one thing-- _ I was married to Pendrick, and I was happy. _ He could dismiss it as simply his brain’s exhausted ramblings, but at the same time, his heart ached to go back. Was he really that desperate for love that he’d consider  _ Pendrick? _

Nedd spent so long grappling with this that he didn’t realize where he’d woken up. Or, more specifically, whose arms he’d woken up in. Strong, pale…  _ that’s right, it’s gods-damned Pendrick again. _ Of course it was. Pendrick looked as if he was still asleep, and Nedd was inclined to blame this all on him, but it was hard to deny that he was also holding tight to Pendrick.

He tried to move away, but one of his arms was trapped underneath Pendrick’s body, so it was hard to move without waking Pendrick. However, Nedd didn’t exactly care about Pendrick, so he yanked his arm as hard as he could and Pendrick stirred.

“Hey,” Pendrick mumbled in a groggy voice, blinking bleary eyes open. It was kind of cute, actually, and Nedd was glad that Pendrick was an illusionist and not a mind-reader.

“Hey,” Nedd breathed, now half-free of Pendrick but frozen as Pendrick studied him. “You’re… you’re holding me.”

Pendrick hummed. “Yeah,” he said. “Dunno how that happened.”

“Could you let go?” Nedd asked, gritting his teeth.

Pendrick hugged him closer, against Nedd’s best efforts to distance himself. “Nah,” he replied. “And what are you going to do about it?”

Nedd paused for a moment. “Nothing, I guess.” He shrugged.  _ He’ll get bored in a few minutes if I don’t acknowledge it.  _ “We have to go soon, don’t we?”

“Seems that way,” said Pendrick. “What, you don’t want to spend more time with me?”

“No, I don’t,” Nedd shot back, and then they both fell quiet.  _ When is he just going to give up? _ Nedd thought sourly, trying and failing again to pull himself out of Pendrick’s grip. He was sure, though, that if he told Pendrick seriously to stop flirting with him, Pendrick would stop--what was it he’d said earlier? That even his enemies deserved hospitality?

He could hear Pendrick breathing, and it was  _ weird. _ Nedd still couldn’t get that dream out of his head--it had been kind of… nice, the idea of domestic life after he’d spent so much time fighting for his life and living on the run, but with Pendrick? The idea was, frankly, ridiculous. And Nedd couldn’t wait to put this all behind him and get on the road again, and leave Pendrick and his stupidly handsome face behind after that.

“You’re being awfully quiet,” Pendrick commented. “Something wrong, Nedd?”

Nedd bit back a snappy retort. “Had a dream,” he answered vaguely. “It was… weird.”  _ Stop pretending that you care about me, _ he wanted to shout. 

“Oh?” Pendrick lifted an eyebrow quizzically. “How so?”

Nedd blinked a few times, trying to figure out how to respond without further inflating Pendrick’s already massive ego. “I was… married in it.”

“To anybody specific?”

_ You want me to say it was you, _ Nedd thought. “No,” he lied sharply. “Nobody in particular.”

* * *

“Oi, Nedd,” came Pendrick’s voice from directly behind where Nedd was standing. Nedd looked up so fast that he hurt his neck and dropped the bag he was holding. “Can I talk to you for a moment?” Pendrick’s hand brushed his shoulder and he jumped.

“Yeah, sure.” He glanced over at Cyrus and Colt, who were a few strides away, and he knew the other Merchants were inside the carriage. Cyrus caught his eye and gave him a knowing look, then resumed his conversation with Colt. Nedd sighed and looked up at Pendrick, who was leaning over him as if Nedd was a bug he was trying to examine.

Pendrick jerked his head and gestured with his hand, saying as he did so, “Over here.” He led Nedd over to the other side of the wagon, where they were out of sight and earshot of the rest of the group. “I want to… I want to apologize.”

Nedd froze and blinked twice. “What?” he uttered quietly.  _ “You _ want to  _ apologize _ to  _ me?” _ And yet there was sincerity in Pendrick’s eyes.

“Yes,” Pendrick said. “I know I’ve already apologized a hundred times for the whole… attempted murder thing, but I wanted apologize personally to you, and also for being… overbearing.” Pendrick shifted awkwardly. “So I’m sorry.”

Nedd was shocked into speechlessness. This wasn’t Pendrick--Pendrick was tricky and dramatic and yes, overbearing. This man was sincere. This was the man he’d seen in his dream. Nedd wished his feelings could be more clear, wished there was an easier way to figure out how he really felt about Pendrick. But they weren’t, and there wasn’t, and so instead of replying, Nedd stepped forward and kissed him.

Pendrick made a muffled noise of surprise, but when Nedd didn’t pull away, he kissed back, slipping one hand into Nedd’s hair and the other around Nedd’s waist. Nedd pushed Pendrick back until Pendrick bumped against the carriage, then broke the kiss.

“I take that to mean that my apology was accepted?” Pendrick murmured against Nedd’s lips.

Nedd snorted. “You’re still the worst,” he replied. “Screw you.”

Pendrick laughed and lifted his eyebrows. “Only if you want to.”

“Shut up!”

**Author's Note:**

> hi these are my ocs and i love them  
> this is part of a larger universe and takes place somewhere during the novel i'm working on (that will be posted here eventually) though it's not directly compliant with that story  
> i told myself the first thing for tsror i posted wasn't going to be some non-canon crap but no... it happened anyway lol


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